Article 173⁹ and its purpose
Article 173⁹ of the Code of Administrative Offences of Georgia establishes administrative liability for breach of the rules on foster care. Foster care is a special form of social service in which a child grows up in a family environment under the supervision of a foster carer, and this relationship is governed by rules established by law — proceeding from the interest of the child. Because the well-being of the child in this institution depends directly on compliance with the rules, their breach is singled out as a separate administrative offence.
What counts as a violation
Under the wording of the article, the administrative offence is a breach of the rules of foster care — that is, of the rules established by legislation for the foster-care relationship. The article itself does not contain a detailed list of these rules — the specific requirements (the powers of the foster carer, matters of the child's health, education and supervision, the reporting procedure) are determined by the legislation of the social-service field.
Therefore, when a case is examined, what is always specified is which concrete requirement was breached and what factual content the breach had. The article covers the breach of the rules connected with foster care in general, and its application is possible at various stages of the relationship.
The amount of the fine
For this violation, Article 173⁹ prescribes a fine on a citizen of fifty minimum amounts of labour remuneration — that is, 50 minimum amounts — while in the case of an official the fine is determined at one hundred minimum amounts of labour remuneration — that is, 100 minimum amounts. These two tiers are established separately for a citizen and for an official, and blending them is impermissible.
The fine is expressed in minimum amounts, and this formulation must not be converted into lari: the monetary value of a minimum amount changes over time according to the procedure established by legislation. Which period's minimum amount applies in a concrete case is resolved under the rules on the imposition of penalties.
Who is liable
The article shows two circles of subjects: citizens, who pay fifty minimum amounts, and officials, for whom a doubled fine — one hundred minimum amounts — is provided. In practice this means that liability may concern both the foster carer and an official involved in the social-service system — depending on the factual circumstances. The existence of guilt is assessed separately in each case.
Procedural questions
The drawing up of the protocol, the time limits for examining the case, the procedure for adopting the decision and the appeal procedure are not regulated directly by this article — these matters are determined by other provisions of the Code. In such cases what is important is the situation established by the foster-care agreement and the social-service documentation — records of the child's condition, reports and supervision materials.
Practical recommendations
For foster carers and officials involved in the social-service system, it is advisable to know the rules of foster care precisely and to document their fulfilment: periodic informing about the child's condition, ensuring the necessary services, and cooperation with the relevant bodies. This is not only a protection of the child's interests but also a means of defending one's own position if a dispute about an alleged breach arises.
To summarise: Article 173⁹ punishes the breach of the rules on foster care: for a citizen a fine of fifty minimum amounts of labour remuneration is provided, and for an official — one hundred minimum amounts. The detailed content of the foster-care rules and the procedural order are determined by the relevant legislation and other provisions of the Code.
The institution of foster care is one of the forms of placing a child in a family environment in Georgia, and its rules provide both for the matters of the child's daily care and for the procedure of the relationship between the foster carer and the social-service body. These rules create the framework of the child's protection, the breach of which is assessed precisely under this article.
Among typical situations of breach one may mention cases where the foster carer does not maintain the necessary contact with the supervising body, does not ensure the services necessary for the child, or breaches other requirements connected with foster care. Such conduct directly collides with the protective purpose of the rules and is assessed accordingly.
For the social-service system itself, this article is also an instrument of quality control: the liability of officials for a breach of the foster-care rules addresses situations where the failure lies not with the carer but with the supervision — untimely visits, formal attitude to reports, inaction on signals about the child's condition. The doubled fine for officials reflects the responsibility of the system, not only of the individual.
Worth noting separately is the environment in which foster care operates: the relationship rests on trust between the state and the foster carer, but trust does not mean the absence of control — on the contrary, the clear framework of rules exists precisely so that this trust functions properly in each concrete case. A breach of the rule breaks that framework and places the whole architecture of foster care in question.